Dragon Well Green Tea - Would You Pay
14,000
Dollars For A Handful?

Why a Chinese man pays 14,000 dollars for just 200 grams of Dragon Well green tea.

According
to the Chinese state news agency Xinhua, a Chinese man recently pays
14,000
US
dollars for just 200 grams of West Lake Dragon Well Tea.

This tea, also known as Longjing or Lung Ching tea, is widely regarded as the Chinese National Tea, in a nation where tea drinking tradition stretches back at least 2,000 years.

The
auction takes place in the International Tea Expo Exhibition held in
West Lake, or Xihu, in Zhejiang Province, China.

West Lake

West
Lake is a renowned tourist attraction 180 kilometers away from Shanghai. The
Longjing tea produced in West Lake is the most celebrated of all
Chinese green tea.

The best tea garden only harvests it once a year in early spring. The earlier the harvest, the higher the quality. Traditionally, this is
the
time of the year when the highest grade green tea is harvested and sold.

10 Longjing Kings

10
Longjing experts show off their roasting skills in the special
occasion.

According to Mr Ge Songde, they are the
kings of this special roasting technique.

After
the tea is picked, it is processed in the same day by roasting
in a wok. It is done entirely by hands in a hot
wok using 10 distinct hand movements.

Aged
between 35 to 59. the 10 experts were champions of the Longjing tea
competitions since 1997.

Making
Longjing tea is a time consuming process. The 10 "kings" can only
roast 500 grams of high grade tea in a single day.

According
to a local expert, one kilogram of the tea costs 5 Yuan in the
70s. Now, it costs 6,000 Yuan
or 800 US dollars.